Consumer confidence edges up in April
UK consumer confidence has increased in April as people feel more positive about their personal finances.
GfK’s Consumer Confidence Index has risen by two points to -19, with all measures up on March or remaining the same.
Joe Staton, client strategy director at GfK, said: “While the overall index score remains negative, all of the underlying five measures this April are significantly better than they were last April. These improvements reflect the impact on household budgets of lower inflation and the anticipation of further tax cuts.
“However, we are a long way from the much firmer sentiment last seen in the period before Brexit, Covid and the conflict in Ukraine.”
GfK’s measure for people’s expectations for the general economic situation over the next 12 months has risen by two points to -21 while its major purchase index has increased by two points to -25.
Meanwhile. the forecast for personal finances over the same period has remained the same as in March at +2.
Staton said: “There is a lot of ground to make up, and caution is needed in the face of continuing economic and fiscal challenges, and revised views on when the Bank of England might cut borrowing costs.
“But spring has arrived and maybe consumer confidence is, at last, slowly becoming brighter and heading in the right direction.”
